UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

GLENDA J. BRIM,

Plaintiff-Appellant,

v.

No. 95-2178

SHIRLEY S. CHATER, COMMISSIONER OF

SOCIAL SECURITY,

Defendant-Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court

for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Greensboro.

N. Carlton Tilley, Jr., District Judge.

(CA-94-62-2)

Submitted: December 19, 1995

Decided: January 9, 1996

Before WILKINS, HAMILTON, and WILLIAMS, Circuit Judges.

_________________________________________________________________

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

_________________________________________________________________

COUNSEL

Marilyn L. Allen, Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellant.

Frank W. Hunger, Assistant Attorney General, Walter C. Holton, Jr.,

United States Attorney, Mack A. Davis, Mary Ann Sloan, Haila N.

Kleinman, Cheryl Nikonovich-Kahn, SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, Atlanta, Georgia, for Appellee.

_________________________________________________________________
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See

Local Rule 36(c).

_________________________________________________________________

OPINION

PER CURIAM:

Glenda J. Brim appeals the district court's order granting summary

judgment to the Appellee in her Social Security disability benefits

action. Finding no reversible error, we affirm.

Brim filed an application for a period of disability and disability

insurance benefits on July 6, 1992, alleging November 30, 1981, as

her onset date. Brim later amended her onset date to April 8, 1983.

Brim's application was denied initially and upon reconsideration. On

February 19, 1993, Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") Emanuel C.

Edwards conducted a hearing. Judge Edwards denied Brim's claim on

September 1, 1993. On December 8, 1993, the Appeals Council

denied Brim's request for review, making Judge Edwards' decision

the final decision of the Commissioner.

Brim filed a complaint for review of the Commissioner's decision

in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North

Carolina on February 8, 1994. The magistrate judge issued a recommendation affirming the Commissioner on January 20, 1995. Brim

objected to the recommendation. Upon de novo review of Brim's

objections, the district court adopted the recommendation granting

summary judgment to the Commissioner. Brim timely appealed.

Brim was born on August 17, 1944, and was forty-two years old

on December 31, 1986, when her insured status expired. Brim alleges

disability due to bronchial asthma and fatigue. Brim has a tenth grade

education. Brim's past relevant work was as a material handler for

General Electric from either 1972, 1973, or 1974 until 1981. Before

1972, Brim was a working supervisor in the finishing department of

a sportswear company.

Brim sought treatment for asthma and general respiratory problems

for a number of years. Between the alleged onset date of disability

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(April 8, 1983) and the date her insured status expired (December 31,

1986), Brim sought treatment from Dr. Eugene LeBauer. Brim complained to Dr. LeBauer of respiratory problems such as shortness of

breath, wheezing, asthma, and a cough; numbness and tingling in her

arms and hands; chest soreness; a pain between her shoulder blades;

nervousness; and a head cold. Although Dr. LeBauer prescribed various medications for Brim's respiratory problems, he also noted several times that Brim was "feeling much better," "feeling real good,"

and "doing well." Brim was also hospitalized for six nights in 1983

and diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with

bronchospasm.

Between September 24, 1986, and December 10, 1986, Brim saw

Dr. James J. Williams for respiratory problems. During that time, Dr.

Williams noted that Brim was "feeling much better," that her asthma

was "slowly improving," that Brim was "feeling fairly well," and that

her asthma had done "relatively well during the past several months."

Brim was hospitalized for two days in August 1986 for an acute exacerbation of chronic asthma. Brim was "feeling fairly well" when she

was discharged.

Brim testified at the hearing that she engaged in activities such as

cooking one meal per day, loading and unloading the dishwasher,

making the beds, grocery shopping once a week, taking out the garbage, volunteering as a driver for Meals on Wheels once a month,

going to church about twice a month, serving as president of a

woman's club that met once a month, and engaging in exercise that

included walking around her house, walking around her pool in waistdeep water, and swimming a lap or two. Brim also attended a ball

game and was planning a trip to Hawaii. Brim's medical records also

revealed that she returned to work in February 1987 and was still

working for an insurance company in November 1988. The transcript

does not document that Brim ever reported this work activity.

Upon reviewing the entire record, including Brim's subjective

complaints, the ALJ concluded that the medical evidence established

that although Brim suffered from a severe combination of impairments, she retained the functional capacity to perform medium level

work activities, and was therefore able to return to her former work

as a supervisor in a sportswear manufacturing company.

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We must determine whether the findings of the Commissioner are

supported by substantial evidence, Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S.

389, 390, 401 (1971), and whether the correct legal standards were

applied. Hays v. Sullivan, 907 F.2d 1453, 1456 (4th Cir. 1990). We

will affirm the Commissioner's findings if they are supported by substantial evidence. Smith v. Schweiker, 795 F.2d 343, 345 (4th Cir.

1986). Substantial evidence is that evidence which"a reasonable

mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Perales, 402

U.S. at 401 (internal quotation marks omitted). The ALJ bears the

ultimate responsibility for weighing the evidence and resolving its

conflicts. Hays, 907 F.2d at 1456.

To establish entitlement to disability insurance benefits, Brim must

be found to have been disabled prior to the date her insured status

expired. 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 423(a), (c) (West Supp. 1995); 20 C.F.R.

§§ 404.101, 404.130, 404.131(a) (1995). Any impairment that began

or became disabling after the "critical date" cannot be the basis for a

favorable finding of disability. See Roberts v. Schweiker, 667 F.2d

1143, 1144-45 (4th Cir. 1981). Brim's insured status expired on

December 31, 1986. Thus, she must prove that she was disabled

before that date. In addition, Brim's disability must be found to have

continued unabated to within fourteen months of the date she filed her

application for benefits. 20 C.F.R. §§ 404.315, 404.320(b)(3), and

404.621(d) (1995). Brim concedes in her brief that she has not alleged

that the severity of her respiratory impairments during the period at

issue met or equaled the applicable Listing of Impairments.

The ALJ found that Brim had a residual functional capacity to perform work that did not involve lifting and carrying more than fifty

pounds, exposure to excessive dust or fumes, extreme temperatures,

or work around dangerous machinery. Thus, Brim's respiratory

impairment does impose some limitations on her ability to work.

However, her impairment is not disabling. Brim retains the ability to

engage in medium work, which requires lifting no more than fifty

pounds at a time with frequent lifting or carrying of objects weighing

up to twenty-five pounds. If a person can do medium work, she can

also do sedentary and light work. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1567(c) (1995).

Brim testified that her former job as a working supervisor in the finishing department of a sportswear company involved lifting less than

ten pounds, allowed for alternate sitting and standing, and was per-

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formed in an air-conditioned environment that was not dusty. The

ALJ found that Brim could return to this work.

The ALJ correctly found that the fact that Brim sought medical

attention on a frequent basis does not mean that she was disabled. In

fact, at some of the office visits with Dr. LeBauer, he noted that Brim

was "feeling much better," "feeling real good," and "doing well." Dr.

Williams noted at times that Brim was "feeling much better," "slowly

improving," and "feeling fairly well." In December 1986, the last

month of the relevant time period, Dr. Williams wrote that Brim's

asthma had done "relatively well during the past several months."

None of Brim's treating physicians stated that she was disabled.

Brim challenges the ALJ's finding that her work activity at the

sportswear company qualifies as past relevant work because confusion exists as to when she worked at this company. If her work was

not within the fifteen-year period prior to the expiration of her insured

status, it would not qualify as "past relevant work" under the regulations. See 20 C.F.R. § 404.1565 (1995). Brim has raised this issue for

the first time on appeal. Generally, we will not consider an issue

which was not raised at the administrative or district court level.

Heckler v. Campbell, 461 U.S. 458, 469 n.12 (1983); Artrip v.

Califano, 569 F.2d 1298, 1300 n.5 (4th Cir. 1978). Brim failed to

demonstrate exceptional circumstances warranting consideration of

the issue; thus, this issue is not properly before us.

We find that the ALJ properly evaluated Brim's daily activities and

her credibility. We have recognized that daily activities may support

the Commissioner's determination that a plaintiff is not disabled. See

Gross v. Heckler, 785 F.2d 1163, 1166 (4th Cir. 1986). "The only fair

manner to weigh a subjective complaint of pain is to examine how the

pain affects the routine of life." Mickles v. Shalala, 29 F.3d 918, 921

(4th Cir. 1994) (Hall, Circuit Judge, concurring). In this case, the ALJ

noted Brim's daily activities and found them to be inconsistent with

the extent of the pain and symptoms alleged.

Brim asserts that her daily activities were very limited and that the

ALJ unfairly focused on several isolated activities to undermine her

credibility. However, the ALJ relied on the various reports of Brim's

activities in reaching his overall conclusion that Brim's activities

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were "illustrative of an individual who was able to carry on a normal

lifestyle." Although the ALJ discussed particular activities such as

Brim's ability to maintain a household pet and the ability to attend a

sports event, these activities were only two of many the ALJ cited in

reaching his conclusion that Brim's overall activities were not consistent with an individual who is totally disabled. When the ALJ's decision is read in its entirety, it is clear that the ALJ completely and

accurately discussed Brim's activities. The ALJ properly found that

Brim's activities, when considered as a whole, are not consistent with

the activities of an individual who is totally disabled.

Moreover, two medical reports note that Brim had returned to work

as a computer operator for an insurance company two months after

her insured status expired. Brim did not volunteer this information to

the ALJ, and the record does not reflect that Brim reported this information to any other Social Security Administration employee.

Brim correctly noted in her brief that the ALJ misstated her smoking history and also misstated that there was a lack of testimony

regarding side-effects of her medication. However, as the magistrate

judge correctly noted, "any errors or omissions that may be contained

in the ALJ's decision do not sufficiently infect his decision to call for

a remand and reconsideration." The ALJ must make credibility determinations, and these determinations should refer specifically to the

evidence supporting them. Hatcher v. Secretary, HHS, 898 F.2d 21,

23 (4th Cir. 1989) (quoting Hammond v. Heckler , 765 F.2d 424, 426

(4th Cir. 1985)). In this case, the ALJ gave sufficient reasons, particularly Brim's daily activities, for refusing to credit fully all of her allegations. Because the ALJ had the opportunity to observe demeanor

and determine credibility, we give great weight to his observations on

these matters. Shively v. Heckler, 739 F.2d 987, 989 (4th Cir. 1984).

Brim's allegations of total disability are not supported by the medical evidence of record. The Commissioner's decision thoroughly

explains the rationale by which she determined that Brim could return

to her former work and is supported by substantial evidence. Accordingly, we affirm the district court's order granting summary judgment

to the Commissioner. We dispense with oral argument because the

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facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials

before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED

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